Smile for Me
by Ephemeral Blossoms
Summary: I know that I can never take that special place in your heart; it’s already been filled. Even so, I will live on just to see you smile. Unrequited NaruHina. SasuNaru if you squint.


A/N: First one shot in a while! I thought of this randomly, and it's basically my two cents on NaruHina. It's unrequited, yes, because it just doesn't work. And this is from Hinata's POV.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto.

Summary: I know that I can never take that special place in your heart; it's already been filled. Even so, I will live on just to see you smile. Unrequited NaruHina. SasuNaru is you squint.

_**Smile for Me**_

I remember when I first saw you.

It was a long time ago, maybe ten years ago? We had just finished the opening ceremony to the academy when our eyes met. I didn't know you very well, and I had only ever heard bad things about you from my family and the villagers. You were sitting on the swing set all alone, and nobody dared to even stand near you. They were whispering weird things about "The Kyuubi brat" and "the downfall of the Yondaime" and all these rude slurs. You made me wonder how hard it must be to live with the burden of loneliness. As the heir to the Hyuuga clan, I had never really been mistreated like that, although I did have my moments where I felt isolated from everyone.

I wanted to become closer to you.

I couldn't become closer to you; my introvert personality prevented that.

As we grew up, I came to admire you. No matter what people did or said, you strived to be the best. It didn't matter if you fell down; you would get back up and try again. It didn't always work. In fact, it almost never did, but that's not the point. You had the strength to try. I admired you for that, and I still do. You were determined, strong, passionate, and ambitious. You strived to be recognized. You were everything I wanted to be. I was always shy and weak. I was already recognized as a potentially amazing ninja due to my bloodline. Whenever I was kicked down, I would stay down there. You gave me a reason to stand back up.

You were my inspiration.

When we graduated from academy students to genin, I wanted to be on the same team as you. I would have done anything to be teamed up with you. I thought you were the key to me becoming stronger. You being my source of light, I felt I could do anything and become a great ninja with you by my side.

I was wrong.

I'm glad now that I wasn't on the same team as you. If I was, I think I would have failed as a ninja. I could never talk to you without fainting, and if I didn't happen to faint, my entire face would go red. I was a failure when it came to social meetings, and I may not have made it through that by being so close to you. It was hard, but I couldn't face you, not as the person I was back then.

Team 8 was a great growing experience for me. I got experience on the field as a ninja, but more than that, I learned how to deal with people. When the Chuunin exams came around, you were there to cheer me on. You lent me your strength, and I too was able to do my best. I was still to shy to admit my feelings for you, but I was able to talk to you and give you that ointment. You made me mature a little, and I think I changed that day.

I thought maybe...we had a chance.

Then, Sasuke left the village. It was then that I think everyone realized just how important he was to you. I never knew that you were best friends, but now that I think about it, you two always acted like an old married couple. I don't know how I never noticed how deeply you cared for him. You cared so much that you almost died trying to bring him back, and you still haven't given up on him. You're still trying to this day. You infiltrated Orochimaru's hide out with Team 7, and we even looked for him together! We found Kabuto instead, but we now know that Sasuke isn't affiliated with Orochimaru anymore. We do know, however, that Sasuke is more powerful than him...That's scary.

Naruto, I love how determined you are to bring him back. Sasuke's become more important that your goal of becoming Hokage. I have no doubt that you will become Hokage one day, but don't let Sasuke be your downfall. I know that you'll meet again one day, but Sasuke has cut his ties with the village. I don't think he ever cut his ties with you; a bond as strong as the bond between best friends can never be broken. When I think of him, I think it must have been like ripping his own body in half when he left you. Because of that, I think he still cares for you. Sasuke was always the determined type, but you are too. You will definitely meet and clash again, and then we'll see where life takes us. I think he's emotionally unstable from his family's massacre, and he's too scared to let anyone in. Show him how powerful bonds and friendship are! Make him believe again, Naruto...make him believe like you made me believe. Who knows; maybe your sunlight will penetrate through his darkness, and maybe then he'll come back home.

Home...the place you can return to. The place where people are waiting for you because they love you.

I love you, Naruto. It used to be a crush, but now I truly realize just how much I care for you. I love you. I love your soul. I love you enough to simply stay by your side. I realize now that there's no hope for us. I know I can never take that special place in your heart; it's already been filled. Even so, I will live on just to see you smile.

Smile for me, Naruto. It's the only light that illuminates my dark world.


End file.
